IO Interactive responds to Hitman trailer controversy

In response to the wealth of criticism directed at the Attack of the Saints trailer that debuted at E3 earlier this week, Hitman: Absolution game director Tore Blystad has publicly apologised for the ensuing controversy and provided context for the trailer within the game itself.

“We’re sorry that we offended people – that was truly not the intention of the trailer,” Blystad commented, fielding questions regarding the questionable nature of the trailer and the controversial response.

“Of course we understand, this has been a very big topic for us and we’ve been reading as much as we could of the articles and responses. We were surprised that it turned into such a huge topic. Something similar happened with our Sniper Challenge pre-order bonus… We just wanted to make something cool, it wasn’t the intention to stir up anything.”

Blystad denied allegation that the trailer was intentional controversial in nature to attract widespread attention, claiming it came as a “big surprise” to the development team. “It was never the intention to provoke people with it.”

Blystad further explained that the trailer was taken from a level in the game of the same name and indicated that the encounter shown was just “one of any number of potential scenarios.”

Deflecting criticism directed at the tight-fitting nun outfits the assassins in trailer are seen wearing, described by commentators as ‘fetishistic’ in nature, Blystad stated that the series “has always been extreme in many ways.”

“The religious themes have been there from the very beginning, along with outlandish party scenes. And there are a lot of movie influences in Hitman Absolution, like Tarantino and Rodriguez. The grindhouse theme is something that we’re using throughout the game. It tends more towards sixties exploitation movies – these were a fascination [for us] because they were so extreme.”